AJC Honors Yazidi Leader Vian Dakhil with Moral Courage Award

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Jun 05, 2016, 07:48 ET

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC honored Vian Dakhil, the only Yazidi member of Iraq's Parliament, with its Moral Courage Award.

"Vian Dakhil is a beacon of inspiration for all who fight against the evil of genocide," said Cori Berger, chair of AJC's Women's Leadership Board, who presented the award at the opening session of this year's AJC Global Forum. While thousands of Yazidis have been killed, said Berger, "tens of thousands more survived, thanks in large measure to the relentless efforts of individuals like Vian Dakhil. She exemplifies the power to act, the power of one human being to make a difference."

Dakhil's moving address to the Iraqi Parliament in August 2014, which went viral on You Tube, raised global awareness of the tragic plight of the Yazidis. She has tirelessly sought international recognition of the genocide ISIS is perpetrating against the Yazidi population, and, after accepting the AJC award, offered a passionate plea for international protection and assistance.

"It is incumbent on the international community to help Yazidis return to their normal lives, to comfort and reassure them," Dakhil said. She emphasized that the ISIS assault launched in August 2014 "was a devised plan."

Dakhil stressed that liberating and protecting all the Yazidis cannot be achieved without military action on the ground. But she also made an emphatic plea for humanitarian aid for the thousands of Yazidis who have escaped and need urgent assistance.

Dakhil thanked AJC for its efforts to assist the Yazidis. "We see you in the lead, with an outstretched hand towards those in need or oppressed," she said.

AJC has supported IsraAID, the Israeli humanitarian relief organization, to provide humanitarian assistance to Yazidis in northern Iraq, as well as to those Yazidi refugees who have resettled in Germany.

SOURCE American Jewish Committee